INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Shoes found during the search for victims from the ill-fated Lion Air flight JT 610
analysed black box data that may explain why the new plane plummeted into the Java Sea, killing 189 people.Search teams have been scouring
the seabed for the fuselage of the Boeing-737 MAX 8, which plunged into the waters off Indonesia's northern coast shortly after takeoff
Monday despite only having been in service a few months."Today we will start diving (again) at the spot where we think the plane crashed,"
said Isswarto, commander of the Indonesian navy's search-and-rescue division."There is a lot of little debris, plane wheels, and chairs --
all totally destroyed and in pieces."Divers were searching an area about 25-35 metres deep, but have been finding fewer body parts than
earlier in the week, he added."They're scattered everywhere and some may have been washed away by the current."Recovered debris from the
Lion Air flight as Indonesia's President Joko Widodo visits the search and rescue operations centre
(AFP)Dozens of body bags containing remains have been recovered from the crash site so far.Television images showed divers tying ropes to
twisted plane parts scattered along the seafloor.On Thursday, authorities said they had recovered one of the plane's black boxes, which
airlines are required to install in jets, as well as parts of its landing gear.The black box could offer investigators their best chance of
discovering why such a new jet crashed
The devices help explain nearly 90 percent of all crashes, according to aviation experts.The devices record information about the speed,
altitude and direction of the plane as well as flight crew conversations.Mechanical faultThe single-aisle Boeing plane, en route from
Jakarta to Pangkal Pinang city, is one of the world's newest and most advanced commercial passenger jets.Next of kin attempt to identify
personal items of loved ones who were on board the ill-fated Lion Air flight
(AFP)Boeing and US National Transportation Safety Board officials have joined the Indonesian team in sifting through twisted metal plane
parts and piles of passengers' torn clothing, shoes, wallets and phones.Passengers' remains are being sent to hospital for DNA
identification, with the first funeral for one of the passengers held on Thursday.But many other victims have yet to be found and there are
hopes more can be recovered in the bulk of the wreckage, including those who may still be strapped to their seats.Lion Air's admission that
the jet had a technical issue on a previous flight -- as well its abrupt fatal dive -- have raised questions about whether it had mechanical
faults such as a speed-and-altitude system malfunction.The accident has resurrected concerns about Indonesia's poor air safety record which
until recently saw its carriers facing years-long bans from entering European Union and US airspace.Indonesian military personnel carry the
debris from the crashed Lion Air flight at Jakarta port
(AFP)Indonesia has had nearly 40 fatal aviation accidents in the past 15 years, according to the Aviation Safety Network.Lion Air,
Indonesia's biggest budget carrier, has been involved in a number of incidents including a fatal 2004 crash.In 2014, an AirAsia crash in the
Java Sea during stormy weather killed 162 people.(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by TheIndianSubcontinent staff and
is published from a syndicated feed.)
